any experience with Sakura Houses?

[Greener]

I think it depends on how long you are staying and the occupancy you choose. I paid about 3400Y per night when I was in Tokyo but this was in 2001-02.

[mercutio]

I need a new guest house...my current one in Soka is OK, but just too dang far away...800 yen and 1 hour round trip to Ueno. Sakura Houses has some good locations in my price range, but I understand they require a 30,000 yen deposit. Do you get this deposit back? Has anyone lived in a Sakura-brand house, or known someone who has?

I'm in a Sakura house right now. I've been waiting to start work so they made a nice cheap alternative to burning the rest of the savings on key money.

The one I am in is pretty clean and from what ive been told very nice for a Gaijin house. Ive looked at some that were just dumps but sakura house seems well run. I think like most places though it is just the luck of the draw as to who you're with that makes it livable or not. And yes you do get 20,000 of the 30,000 back after you check out but you have to give them 3 weeks notice of moveout.

[spyder]

I too have stayed at Sakura House. 100% recommended. The above information about deposit/move out notice is spot on.

[akatsuka]

I stayed at "Narimasu 2" guest house with sakura house. I'm sure some of their more newer places are more better, but this house was dirty, old and in need of repair. When I first arrived, one of the washing machines were broken (and remained so for the entire 9 months of my stay, despite calls informing them.), the kitchen bin stunk and hadnt been emptied for what seemed like months (I know not really their fault, but it made me feel sick cleaning it), the toilet, bathroom and kitchen were all badly kept. This may not be entirely sakura houses fault, more the people who stayed there.

In my room the window had been taken out and replaced with hard clear plastic, taped to the inside wall. As a London female, I didnt like this prospect, but Sakura House never fixed it despite my complaints.

I only stayed with them as they were convenient for work, and I couldnt be asked to deal with moving again.

If you do choose to stay with them, make sure its one of the newer buildings.

If you can speak/read japanese, check out this guest house company.
http://www.monthly-shintoshin.com/

[Samurai_Jerk]

When I was looking around Sakura House showed me one place what was an absolute third-world dump. It was hands down the worst plave I've ever seen. The tatami were literally squishy. The room I stayed at in the Chungking Mansion when I was visiting Hong Kong on a backpacker's budget in '99 was nicer. They must have started with their worst place or something. The girl who took me there said she thought it might have been too old and dirty for my taste after she had talked to me on the phone. All I could think was, "Then why the fuck did you waste my time bringing me out here?" She then told me they had a new place that was really nice, but at that point I just said thanks but no thanks and will never look at anything they offer again. I don't care how desperate a situation I'm in. I'd rather sleep under a blue tarp in Yoyogi Koen.

[FG Lurker]

Weird zombie thread that comes back to life once every few years.